[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 221 (Tuesday, December 29, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7964-S7965]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, it is an unusual sight of a Senator in the 
Capitol between Christmas and New Year's. This is the one time we 
really try to reserve for our personal and family responsibilities. Our 
families, like others, look forward to the Christmas season. It is the 
one time of the year we desperately try to find ways to come together.
  Of course, COVID-19 intervened and made that more challenging. But, 
even so, the notion of coming back to Washington this week and staying, 
perhaps, more than a day to try to finish our work is unusual, and the 
circumstances surrounding it are extraordinary, as well, not the least 
of which is the fact that we have two bills that have to be thought of 
in the context of our responsibilities.
  First and foremost is the National Defense Authorization Act. This 
month, both the House and the Senate passed, with overwhelming 
bipartisan majorities, the fiscal year 2021 National Defense 
Authorization Act.
  Senator Inhofe of Oklahoma, a Republican, was on the floor before me. 
He and Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island put in more time than most 
Members can appreciate to make sure that this bill really served our 
military and the goal of national security. They came up with a good 
bill, one I was proud to support it.
  This annual legislation has been signed into law for six consecutive 
decades. When the Senate fails to do anything, they always do the 
National Defense Authorization Act. It shows Congress can come 
together, at least on this measure, when it comes to supporting our men 
and women in uniform and keeping our country safe.
  This year, the bill authorized $740.5 billion in defense spending. It 
provides another 3 percent, well-deserved, pay raise for our troops. It 
also recognizes that many in the Armed Forces are on the frontlines 
here at home, as well, helping fight the ongoing COVID-19 epidemic, 
providing our troops with necessary benefits and protections, including 
a 10-percent increase in hazardous duty pay.
  The bill also includes a number of provisions that I authored and 
supported, including language expressing strong support for the Baltic 
States and Ukraine, especially in the face of continued, unforgivable 
Russia aggression. It requires the renaming of military bases in the 
United States which were once named in honor of Confederate generals, 
those who served in the Confederacy in an attempt to secede from the 
Union and to defend the institution of slavery and have been enshrined 
in the names of these bases for many, many years. This effort to rename 
them is long, long overdue. It tries to correct and recognize the 
mistakes of our past and really address the sensitive racial inequities 
at the Pentagon when it comes to this decision-making.

  It places restrictions on the transfer of military equipment to law 
enforcement agencies. We have to address the issue of the 
militarization of our police at a time when we are, frankly, making an 
assessment of the role of police to make certain that the overwhelming 
majority of law enforcement officers--those who are good, principled, 
civic-minded individuals--is honored and that those who fail to meet 
the test are removed from service.
  It expands benefits to our veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange 
during the Vietnam war. There are 191,000 Vietnam-era veterans in my 
State of Illinois. Many of them were exposed to toxins, such as Agent 
Orange, during their service and now are paying the price.
  It makes it easier for victims of military sexual trauma to report 
instances of such crime and expand support for survivors. The most 
recent, horrible incident at Fort Hood was a reminder of what we need 
to do to bring the military into the 21st century when it comes to 
respecting the rights of all people, men and women.
  It strengthens safeguards against foreign cyberattacks. We know how 
important that is since the recent revelation confirmed by Secretary of 
State Pompeo that Russia is at work again in its attempting to 
compromise our Federal agencies, their data, their information, and the 
security secrets that they keep for our protection.
  It authorizes funding for PFAS-related research. If you have never 
heard of the phrase ``PFAS'' before, I can tell you that you are bound 
to hear it in the future. This was used as a flame retardant and in 
some other capacities on many Air Force bases and military bases around 
the United States. We are finding that it is still there and is still 
dangerous. We need to put money into remediation to help these military 
installations, including the Scott Air Force Base in Belleville, IL, 
where PFAS was detected earlier this year.
  Still, despite all of the good things in this bill and the 
bipartisanship that supported it, President Trump decided to veto the 
bill--one of his rare vetoes. He prefers we continue to honor the 
Confederate leaders who committed treasonous atrocities in order to 
preserve slavery. I don't think that this is reflective of the United 
States of today or its values, but that is his position.
  When he was called out for this racist inclination, he changed the 
reason for his veto. He claimed the bill didn't do enough to fight 
China or that we should include a measure to address liability issues 
for tech companies--

[[Page S7965]]

never mind that tech company liability matters have nothing to do with 
the National Defense Authorization Act. He just doesn't like that there 
was criticism coming down for some of the misstatements and lies and 
disinformation he has been spreading on social media.
  The President also fails to recognize that this Defense authorization 
bill, in fact, does get tough on China. It creates a new Pacific 
Deterrence Initiative that puts America back in the seat of leadership 
in that region, where we need to be. The Trump administration could 
have started this initiative on its own, but it did not, so Congress 
stepped up and created this security partnership because the White 
House was asleep at the wheel. At the end of the day, I suppose we 
can't expect anything more from a President who has denigrated our 
troops by calling them suckers and losers.
  I voted to support the fiscal year 2021 NDAA. I will support it again 
to override this President's unforgivable and reckless veto. I am glad 
the House did so on Monday. I hope we in the Senate do the same. Coming 
back to Washington was not something I looked forward to this week. I 
wanted to stay home. Yet I knew, when it came to funding our troops, I 
had to be here. Many of my colleagues feel the same. I hope, tomorrow, 
we can take that up quickly.

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